State Dept.s anti-Semitism monitoring office to be unstaffed as of July 1 *

WASHINGTON (JTA) — The U.S. State Department’s office to monitor and combat anti-Semitism will be unstaffed as of July 1.

A source familiar with the office’s workings told JTA that its remaining two staffers, each working half-time or less, would be reassigned as of that date.

The Trump administration, which has yet to name an envoy to head the office, would not comment on the staffing change. At full staffing, the office employs a full-time envoy and the equivalent of three full-time staffers.

The State Department told JTA in a statement that it remained committed to combating anti-Semitism – and cited as evidence the tools, including the department’s annual reports on human rights and religious freedom, that existed before Congress mandated the creation of the envoy office in 2004.

“We want to ensure the Department is addressing anti-Semitism in the most effective and efficient method possible and will continue to endeavor to do so,” the statement said.

http://www.jta.org/2017/06/22/news-opinion/politics/state-dept-s-anti-semitism-monitoring-office-to-be-unstaffed-as-of-july-1#.WU3KrdrRIl1.twitter









* Probably identifying too many Trump supporters